CMSC 341H Data Structures Spring 2007

Course Description

Data Structures are the paramount concern of this course. The principle
objective of the course is to help you learn how to design and analyze
a wide range of data structures.

The course covers data structures and associated algorithms.
Relationships among data structures, their utility in various
situations, and factors affecting their performance in algorithms will be considered. You will learn to analyze
the demands of algorithms, how to choose appropriate data structures,
and how to integrate data structures into algorithms.

Head First Java, Second Edition by Kathy Sierra and Bert Bates,
O'Reilly, 2005, ISBN 0-596-00920-8

Data Structures and Algorithm Analysis by Clifford
Shaffer,
Prentice-Hall, 1996. This book has good coverage of data structures and
algorithm
analysis in C++. It has excellent descriptions of a number of data
structures.

Data Structures, Algorithms, and Applications in C++ by
Sartaj Sahni, McGraw-Hill, 1998. Covers some material not covered by
the Heileman text.

Data Structures and Algorithms by Alfred Aho, John
Hopcroft, and Jeffrey Ullman, Addison-Wesley, 1983. This is one of the
all-time classics, written in Pascal.

Abstract Data Types by Nell Dale and Henry Walker, D.C.
Heath and Company, 1996. A high-level view of data structures and
algorithms,
with no programming language specified. A very worthwhile and modern
text
with an alternative viewpoint.

Prerequisites

We will assume that you have mastered the material from CMSC 201,
CMSC 202,
and CMSC
203. We will not review
material that has been covered in the prerequisite courses. We do cover
a few of the concepts from CMSC 202, but from a deeper
point-of-view. Since Java has not been covered in the prerequisite courses,
for this semester we will assume no prior knowledge of Java.

Grading

Your grade for this course will be based on
5 programming projects, 2 in-class exams and the final exam.

Each programming project is 8% of your grade, each exam is 20%
of your grade.

Note that the due dates for the projects and the
dates of the exams are already set (q.v., the syllabus and project
policy handout). Please plan your schedules accordingly. Makeup exams will be given
only under the most dire circumstances (almost never).

Your final letter grade is based on the standard formula:

0 <= F < 60, 60 <= D < 70, 70 <= C < 80,
80 <= B < 90, 90 <= A <= 100

These levels may be adjusted slightly in your favor, but grades will
not be ``curved'' in the conventional sense.

Your grade is given for timely work done during the semester;
incomplete grades will only be given for medical illness or other such
dire circumstances.

Attendance and Readings

You are expected to attend all lectures. You are responsible for all
material covered in the lecture, even if it is not in the textbook. You
should keep up with the assigned readings during the semester. Some
reading material will be distributed through the course web page. You
are responsible for the material in the readings, even if it is not
covered during lecture.

You must study to do well in this course. It will not be enough to
attend lectures and do the homework. As advanced undergraduates, you
will be responsible for learning material that is not necessarily
covered in lectures. A prime learning requirement is that you
contribute to class discussions and raise questions about the course
material.

Contacting Me or the TAs

Please feel free to visit me or the TAs during our office hours. If you
can't make it during the regular hours, please ask for an appointment.
We will do everything we can to be available to provide help with this
course. Office hours, phone numbers and other contact information is
available on-line. If you need to contact any of the course staff
outside of lecture and office hours, email is much better than the
telephone. You should, however, observe the following etiquette:

Please do not email program code. If you want me or the TA to
help you debug your code submit the code in the usual way, and then
send email about the problem. We will look at the submitted code. Please,
do NOT
mail code to me or to the TA!

Note that the Help Center does not offer help with code for this
course.

Please use your your UMBC account to send mail. This will remove
any ambiguity about who you are.

Academic Integrity

Cheating in any form will not be tolerated. Instances of cheating will
be reported to the UMBC Academic Conduct Committee. These reports are
filed by the Committee and can be used for disciplinary action such as
a permanent record on your transcript. Academic honesty is absolutely
required of you. You are expected to be honest yourself and to report
any cases of dishonesty you see among other students in this class.
Reports of dishonest behavior will be kept anonymous.
Further details on honesty in doing projects for this course are
on-line at the Project
Policy link.

Students are welcome and encouraged to study together for exams, but
examinations are to be your own work -- not your neighbor's and not
your notes. All exams are closed-book, closed-notes. Only pencils (or
pens) and erasers are permitted in the exam room unless otherwise
indicated. Scratch paper is provided to you, as needed. Having any
other materials in your possession during an exam will be taken as
evidence of cheating and dealt with accordingly.

Lab Access and Policies

During TA Lab Office Hours, students enrolled in CSMC 341 will be able
to use computers in the CSEE Systems Lab (ITE 240) for their project work.
The lab contains 24 high-end Pentium machines with 1 GB RAM, dual-processor
Pentium 4 CPUs and a CD-RW drive. Working there, during those
times, will give students almost instant access to TA assistance as they
work on projects.
Students using the lab must observe all the rules below:

Observe all the University and Departmental policies regarding the use of the University's and the Department's computer and laboratory facilities.

No Food or Drinks Allowed in the Lab. Absolutely! Never!

Do not log in to multiple machines, especially when there are students waiting for access to the lab.

Be respectful of others working in the lab. DO NOT create disturbances (e.g. don't be noisy, don't play audible music, etc).

CMSC 421 related activities have priority. This is because they have special
requirements that limit them to this lab, while there are designated OIT Labs
across campus that provide general computer access.

Observe the TA hours in the lab. CMSC 341 students are only allowed to work during the TA lab hours. Sign in with the TA when you arrive. You must leave the lab by when the TA goes off duty - no excuses, no exceptions!

Report offenders of lab rules to the instructional staff.

Report any suspicious activity to the instructional staff or the Campus police, as appropriate.

The lab is provided to you by the University for your benefit. Take good care of it! Do not abuse it!

Repeated offenses might result in shutting down the laboratory for everybody.

Failure to observe all the lab rules will result in suspending your lab access, as well as further disciplinary actions as determined by Departmental and University policy.

Please check the web page frequently. Any changes to the page will be
mentioned in the "Latest News" link.
Last modified on Monday Aug 27 by Penny Rheingans
email: rheingan AT cs.umbc.edu
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